Three Campaigns Targeted as Senate Pushes Safety

According to The Hill, during a 29 July interview on “Face the Nation,” Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) voiced apprehension against the Senate and political parties over extensive phishing attacks.

“I don’t know who else is on the list, however, I do know that we’ve had an experience in our office with people receiving phishing electronic mails with social media accounts,” Shaheen said in the interview. “There has been one condition that we have gone over to authorities to look into. And we are hearing that this is extensive with political parties all over the country, and with members of the Senate.”

Sunday’s “Face the Nation” interview came just days after Microsoft verified that the struggle of Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.) was among the three congressional struggles in which Russians had unsuccessfully aimed workforce and computer systems.

Russian interfering in midterm election campaigns has been an increasing concern since the 2016 election. Information that the Mueller inquiry charged 12 Russians for election interfering has renewed worries, specifically as the 2018 midterm polls are quickly approaching. President Trump met with his National Security Council (NSC) on Friday, 27 July, to tackle these and other cybersecurity troubles.

After the meeting, the White House issued a statement confirming that “the President has made it clear that his Government will not accept foreign meddling in our elections from any nation, state or other malevolent actors.”

Before the NSC meeting, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis reportedly told journalists that US cyber-defenses have already been positioned, as per the Washington Examiner’s Daily on Defense newsletter. “Rest assured, there are actions in progress to safeguard our elections or to disclose any external attempts by anyone to induce the American public, to demonstrate wrong news, that type of thing,” Mattis said.

As verification of foreign interference continues to increase, the Senate Rules Committee aims to prioritize the Safe Elections Law, which is allegedly scheduled for markup in mid-August.